Two men have been found guilty of the murder of a teenager who died after a vicious attack following a disco event in Luanda Sub-county, Vihiga County.
The High Court in Vihiga convicted Fredrick Shem and Mathias Alembi for the killing of Kevin Otiato, a student who succumbed to severe head injuries after being assaulted on August 17, 2018.
Court proceedings revealed that Otiato had left home for computer classes at Ekwamba Secondary School before later attending a local disco in Ekwanda Location with friends. Hours later, he was discovered unconscious by the roadside with serious head injuries and was rushed to hospital, where he later died.
A postmortem examination confirmed that the teenager died from severe head trauma caused by blunt force injuries.
During the trial, both Shem and Alembi denied involvement in the killing, arguing that no eyewitness directly saw them attack the victim. Shem claimed he was working in Nairobi on the night of the incident, while Alembi maintained he was at home with his wife and suggested he had been falsely implicated due to a personal grudge involving a former girlfriend.
However, prosecutors presented evidence linking the two suspects to the attack. Investigating officer Sergeant Francis Matheka testified that Otiato and another victim were ambushed by a group of five individuals near the disco venue. One witness identified Alembi as being among the attackers.
Police later searched Alembi’s residence and recovered a metal rod, a sword and cannabis. Although forensic tests did not establish blood traces on the recovered weapons, investigators maintained that the suspects were connected to the crime.
In her judgment, Justice Jacqueline Kamau dismissed the alibi defenses, ruling that the prosecution had successfully placed the accused at the scene and established that they acted with a common intention during the attack.
The judge stated that it was not necessary to determine which member of the group delivered the fatal blow, noting that all participants shared responsibility for the violence that ultimately led to Otiato’s death.
The conviction brings to a close an eight-year legal battle and offers long-awaited justice to the family of the slain student.
